Countess

This is exactly what I want from a novella. Ripped my heart out multiple times in under 200 pages. 10/10, no notes.

I love how this novella jumps right into the action. A gender swapped queer space opera retelling of a classic is completely my cup of tea and I was grateful for this advanced reading copy. I love the novella format, the revenge narrative, and would definitely recommend this to others.

I loved the story, the world building and meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it.

This book was perfect for me! My favorite book of all time is The Count of Monte Cristo, and this is one of the only books that scratches the same itch for me. Countess has unforgettable characters, a propulsive story centered on revenge and revolution, and it's all set in a sci-fi world.
Often, I find that novellas are too short to pack much of a punch, but this short book hit all of the same emotional points and plot points that a longer book would for me. It's short enough to use in a classroom and discuss so many social issues, which is great for me as a teacher, but also just for me as a reader. This will be a book that I recommend to so many people.

This was really good! Such a fun way of considering earthly tensions and hatreds continued into space expansion.


Thanks to the author and publisher for providing me with an ARC for an honest review.


Countess really is a queer, Caribbean, anti-colonial sci-fi story. None of these aspects are hidden or unclear. I was hungry throughout the novella because of the fantastic descriptions of Antilles’ dishes. And the accents of Antilleans continue into space. This is a novella that covers over a decade of time so there are bits that I wish were expanded, like the development of certain relationships or what Virika’s time post-prison was like a little bit more. But what is there is a really strong narrative of someone within the system realizing the system is what it is and always will be and fighting for her people. There are fantastical elements briefly briefly encountered and some talk of science, though not to any degree that would confuse a casual or serious reader of sci-fi.
I liked this novella a lot and wish there were more than 150 pages. A fun, sad read for me.